A pure hug!

According to a study done at the Department of Psychology at Carnegie Mellon University and published on Wednesday, October 3^rd 2018 in PLOS One, a simple hug can increase positive feelings and reduce negative ones on days when people experience emotional conflict.

While there are people who are not big on hugs, most people like receiving hugs from loved ones. For those of us who love receiving and/or giving hugs, we know they feel good and at times we look for any excuse to hug our loved ones. Furthermore, hugs make us feel like we are cared about, but at times we feel awkward and wonder if the other person enjoys, or even benefits, from our hugs. New research shows that hugs can cheer us up and possibly take the edge off of interpersonal conflicts.

The study looked at the social interactions of 404 adults over two weeks. They interviewed the participants by phone every night for two weeks to assess their daily interpersonal interactions. They asked participants about their social activities and partners, experiences of interpersonal conflict, and whether they had received a hug, and their mood that day.

Participants reported having fewer negative feelings and more positive ones on days they received hugs than on days they experienced conflict but not hugs. This trend was found to be true regardless of their gender, race, marital status, and age. It is important to note that women reported more hugs than men.

Previous research also suggests that physical touch (e.g. hugs) prompt positive changes such as the release of oxytocin, a mood-enhancing hormone, as well as a reduction in stress and boost in heart and brain activity.

Huggies

Companies, such as Huggies, use such research as their backbone for advertising their products. A 30 second Huggies commercial from 2015 uses research similar to Murphy’s to sell their product by mentioning the importance and benefits of hugging and how their diapers hug a baby’s body just like his/her mom’s. At the end of the advertisement, the link provided to viewers is “NoBabyUnhugged.ca”.

Over the past few decades, the importance of hugging and the benefits that one gets from hugging has become the new topic for researchers. Unlike some other research topics, hugs are something we can all relate to. Some of us use hugs as an excuse to get close to someone we like, others use hugs to greet friends and family, while others use it to comfort loved ones. Whatever the reason behind a hug is, we all do it and some of us enjoy them more than others.

It is important to note that Hugs aren’t only advertised by companies, there have been numerous TEDx talks on the benefits and power of hugging too.

Corresponding Videos:

Ted Talk: Livingston Garland discusses the Importance of Physicality and Restoring Relational Bridges.

Ted Talk: Tom Krieglstein believes that non-technological moments matter the most.

Ted Talk: Janet Courtney believes hugs can have the same effect as a magical rainbow.